Blue Moon has been around. This file art dates from 1999 (Denver Post)

UPDATED: 3:55 p.m. MT with comments from MillerCoors and the Beer Institute on behalf of Anheuser-Busch.

The Boulder-based Brewers Association today stuck a careful toe into an increasingly contentious debate in the U.S. brewing industry, issuing a statement suggesting multi-national brewers “are deliberately attempting to blur the lines” between their own craft beer-inspired brands and craft beer created by small and independent brewers.

The clever headline on the press statement: Craft vs. Crafty (the full text is below).

But the BA stopped short of calling for government intervention or even asking big brewers to change their marketing and labeling. The focus, rather, is on trying to better educate the consumer, BA director Paul Gatza said in an interview.

The statement singles out a couple of beers – Blue Moon, the Belgian wheat that began as a Coors product before the mega-merger/joint venture that led to the creation of MillerCoors, and the Anheuser-Busch InBev product Shock Top. But those are just the most recognized brands that the BA places in the “crafty” category – and only a part of what’s happening in the beer world.

AB InBev, for instance, recently swallowed up genuine Chicago-based craft beer Goose Island, which has a big following among beer geeks for some of its boundary-pushing beers. Goose Island beer is being brewed all over – including Fort Collins.

“We call for transparency in brand ownership and for information to be clearly presented in a way that allows beer drinkers to make an informed choice about who brewed the beer they are drinking,” the BA statement said.

Gatza told First Drafts the issue is rankling some BA members. “When they hear that Anheuser-Busch plans to make Goose Island a million-barrel brand in a few years in all 50 states, that causes them concern. Now they are competitors. The way it plays out is, by being a 100 percent-owned brand by Anheuser-Busch, their wholesalers can say, ‘We think you are better off having that Goose Island tap handle rather than a regional craft brewery.’ They can use that muscle from the retailer to the wholesaler to basically get tap handles. It’s a competitive tactic, but the playing field is not necessarily level.”

He noted that on the plus side, many wholesalers value genuine craft beer and are strong advocates for local products from small and independent breweries.

The BA’s move has sparked a lively debate on Twitter – see the #CraftvsCrafty hashtag – and not all craft drinkers are siding with the group. Beer writer Andy Crouch, for instance, had this (among other things) to say:

Dear @brewersassoc: You do know that Coors has brewed Blue Moon longer than most “crafts” have even been in business, right? #CraftvsCrafty

Gatza said at this juncture, the BA is not trying to involve the Federal Trade Commission or the Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau to look into potential misleading advertising or mandate new labeling.

“At this point, we’re just trying to educate the beer drinker,” he said. “There is often another company behind the beer and they have a right to know.” He said that as a trade association, it would not be appropriate for the BA to call on big brewers to market their beers differently. “What I am saying is the beer drinker has the right to know,” he said.

Pete Marino, vice president of communications with Chicago-based MillerCoors, responded: “What consumers think is the most important thing to us. Consumers are voting with their wallets in a highly competitive marketplace every day – and beer drinkers have made Blue Moon the largest craft beer in the country.”

As to the BA’s assertion that Blue Moon should not be characterized as a craft beer, Marino replied: “I would say most beer drinkers don’t get hung up on industry definitions. We are concerned about making great beer consumers can enjoy. Whether people call them craft – or the Brewers Association wants to call them something else – we’re not going to get too concerned about that because we’re just going to keep brewing great beers.”

Anheuser-Busch declined to comment and referred questions to the Washington-based Beer Institute, a lobbying group that represents large and small brewers. BI president Joe McClain said in this statement:

“Critics of today’s brewers miss the point that small brewers in this country are already enjoying a generous tax advantage over larger brewers and all importers, a policy designed to open pathways to the marketplace. In fact, the small brewers in this country are experiencing explosive growth – their dollar sales were up 14 percent in the first half of 2012 – and they represent the fastest growing segment within the industry, having added 442 new breweries in 2012 alone. This indicates that the craft brewing sector is doing just fine producing high-end beer for high-income consumers, despite a sluggish economic recovery impacting hard-working, middle class Americans.

“It’s also worth pointing out the important economic footprint that large brewers provide. Today, the major brewers are responsible for the lion’s share of the beer industry’s $223 billion annual contribution to our nation’s economy, helping put more than 1.8 million Americans to work, from brewery workers to bartenders, from factory hands to farmers. We’re proud of what major brewers have contributed to American culture, the economy and our history.

“Ultimately, it comes down to consumer choice. And with a record number of brewers in today’s marketplace, consumers have more choice than ever before.”

And here is the full BA statement …
Craft vs. Crafty: A Statement from the Brewers Association

Boulder, CO • December 13, 2012—The Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American craft brewers, issued the following statement regarding the increase in production and promotion of craft-like beers by large, non-craft breweries:

An American craft brewer is defined as small and independent. Their annual production is 6 million barrels of beer or less and no more than 25 percent of the craft brewery is owned or controlled by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer.

The community of small and independent craft brewers has grown as beer enthusiasts embrace new, diverse beers brewed by their neighbors and friends who are invested in their local communities. Beer drinkers are voting with their palates and dollars to support these entrepreneurs and their small and independent businesses.

In 2011, small and independent craft brewers saw their industry grow 13 percent by volume; in the first half of 2012, volume grew by an additional 12 percent. Meanwhile, the overall beer industry was down 1.3 percent by volume and domestic non-craft was down 5 million barrels in 2011.

Witnessing both the tremendous success and growth of craft brewers and the fact that many beer lovers are turning away from mass-produced light lagers, the large brewers have been seeking entry into the craft beer marketplace. Many started producing their own craft-imitating beers, while some purchased (or are attempting to purchase) large or full stakes in small and independent breweries.

While this is certainly a nod to the innovation and ingenuity of today’s small and independent brewers, it’s important to remember that if a large brewer has a controlling share of a smaller producing brewery, the brewer is, by definition, not craft.

However, many non-standard, non-light “crafty” beers found in the marketplace today are not labeled as products of large breweries. So when someone is drinking a Blue Moon Belgian Wheat Beer, they often believe that it’s from a craft brewer, since there is no clear indication that it’s made by SABMiller. The same goes for Shock Top, a brand that is 100 percent owned by Anheuser-Bush InBev, and several others that are owned by a multinational brewing and beverage company.

The large, multinational brewers appear to be deliberately attempting to blur the lines between their crafty, craft-like beers and true craft beers from today’s small and independent brewers. We call for transparency in brand ownership and for information to be clearly presented in a way that allows beer drinkers to make an informed choice about who brewed the beer they are drinking.

And for those passionate beer lovers out there, we ask that you take the time to familiarize yourself with who is brewing the beer you are drinking. Is it a product of a small and independent brewer? Or is it from a crafty large brewer, seeking to capitalize on the mounting success of small and independent craft brewers?

Eric, I’d love for you to find out how much money MillerCoors and ABI donate to the BA yearly, and what percentage of their income that is. I think if the BA is going to start a witch hunt, they need to be transparent with how much money those witches are contributing.

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